If Alberta was her own Country........

[FishingMOM]

If Alberta were its own country, it would rank No. 3 in the world when it comes to the Human Development Index, a global measure of income, education and life expectancy, according to an Ottawa think-tank.

The Centre for the Study of Living Standards has ranked the provinces in the same manner countries were ranked by the United Nations last year, a list that saw Canada as a whole place 6th in the world relative to HDI.

“Canada falls into an impressive sixth place in the international HDI rankings,” said the report released on Friday.

“However, this ranking hides significant regional variations among the Canadian provinces and territories.”

Among the provinces and territories, Alberta was found to have the highest HDI, while Ontario and the Northwest Territories came in second and third. Prince Edward Island and Nunavut were in the bottom two places for 2011.

If Nunavut were ranked as its own country, it would place 38th in the world.

“It is also important to understand why Alberta is the top ranking region, and Nunavut is the lowest ranking one,” said the report.

“Given the small differences between provinces and territories in the education indicators, it is clear that these differences are primarily driven by differences in life expectancy and income.”

The report said most provinces experienced similar levels of growth between 2000 and 2011, with two exceptions: Nunavut, and Newfoundland and Labrador — where the HDI grew the fastest of all the provinces and territories.

kcryderman@calgaryherald.com

[Hagalaz]

If Alberta was a country.

As nice as it would be, I think that its a dream that will never be recognized.

[leeaspell]

Would that mean all the newfies would need passports and visas?

[whitetail Junkie]

Alberta....The Divorce Capital of canada....Longer Life\more income doesnt mean its a better place to live.To even think Alberta should be seperated from Canada is a Disgrace.

[Arn?Narn.]

Originally Posted by whitetail Junkie

Alberta....The Divorce Capital of canada....Longer Life\more income doesnt mean its a better place to live.To even think Alberta should be seperated from Canada is a Disgrace.

^this

[hal53]

Originally Posted by Arn?Narn.

^this

ahhh yes...much better to let the Mulcairs of the world kick us in the face , while sucking up our money like a Hoover, so we can all say we're great Canadians....you guys are pretty pathetic.....radio talk show in Quebec the other day asked "whose fault is the student protests?"...a lady called in and said it was Alberta's fault, when asked why...she said because they should send us more money, then we wouldn't have to raise the tuition. Nice, real nice......

[Mutter87]

Originally Posted by whitetail Junkie

Alberta....The Divorce Capital of canada....Longer Life\more income doesnt mean its a better place to live.To even think Alberta should be seperated from Canada is a Disgrace.

Lol a disgrace? Should a wife let her Husband cheat on her and treat her like garbage so she doesn't seem Immoral by getting a divorce?

[Big Daddy Badger]

Originally Posted by Mutter87

Lol a disgrace? Should a wife let her Husband cheat on her and treat her like garbage so she doesn't seem Immoral by getting a divorce?

You missed the point being made by a country mile which was that there is more to measuring a society than how much money everyone has.

And...does every divorce in Alberta start with some man cheating on his wife?

If so...maybe he should have referred to the infidelity rates because that would have to be a much better example of a societal fail than simply pointing out that here in the moral conservative capital of Canada...people simply can't commit to one another as well as in other parts of the country.

That said...I'd love to see the west separate but I do not think Alberta could go it alone and maintain the same economic advantage it currently enjoys.

We need more diversity and access to a port.

[rwm1273]

Originally Posted by Mutter87

Lol a disgrace? Should a wife let her Husband cheat on her and treat her like garbage so she doesn't seem Immoral by getting a divorce?

Many women cheat on their husbands too, but when it comes to divorce, she will be awarded for cheating and the husband will suffer for it.

[Rocky7]

Originally Posted by Hagalaz

If Alberta was a country.

As nice as it would be, I think that its a dream that will never be recognized.

When's the last time you heard of "Czechoslovakia"? Do you know why that is? If deconfederation was recognized here, it would be recognized everywhere.

It is not necessary for Alberta to have oceanfront property. Austria does not. Switzerland does not. They do fine and neither has a couple centuries of oil reserves, vast farmland, coal reserves for a millenium, etc. We would share one other thing in common - a work ethic.

Alberta's immediate problem if we decided to secede would be to immediately close the borders to immigration until we got citizenship/visa rules sorted out. The last thing we'd need is a sudden influx of deadbeats.

Originally Posted by pesky672

What would happen to Alberta if tomorrow someone discovered an economical way of turning water into energy and we went through another period when nobody wanted cattle from here?

Exactly the same thing that happened last time - we'd be on our own. Except that we'd have a few $T in the Heritage Fund because, for example, we would not have been sending $15B/yr. to eastern takers.

Originally Posted by GustavMahler

I've asked this before on the forums whether people remember the 80's in Alberta,,, but I guess most were elsewhere in the country to remember this time.

You must've asked very quietly. I was here. So was Hal53. So were others. Norway boomed while we died. Trudeau, Marc LaLonde and MacEachern, supported by greedy eastern liberals, did it. On purpose. On October 28, 1980.

What do you want to know?

Originally Posted by pesky672

Most of BC would love to push the lower mainland into the drink but unfortunatley...

If Alberta filed for divorce, the Kootenay, Caribou and Peace regions would be making application to join us within 2 years. We'd say: "He__, yes."

[TheKi]

here's a good question: what is stopping us if were so better off. Its not like the east can stop us, and if people in Alberta want to stay in Canada then no one is stopping them right. What would it take for Alberta to split? Do we need a separatist provincial government?

[Mekanik]

Coming from an eastern perspective, these are interesting points. Maybe you'd like to know that they feel fairly the same about Ottawa, Ontario in general, and Quebec.maybe the problem isn't that Alberta's in Canada, maybe the problems is Ottawa and Quebec is full of people that don't belong in Canada?

[TheKi]

Originally Posted by Mekanik

Coming from an eastern perspective, these are interesting points. Maybe you'd like to know that they feel fairly the same about Ottawa, Ontario in general, and Quebec.maybe the problem isn't that Alberta's in Canada, maybe the problems is Ottawa and Quebec is full of people that don't belong in Canada?

when you say that people don't belong in Canada it seems a little harsh, i agree that Ontario and Quebec are the problem but for a different reason: its not that they don't belong in Canada but they shouldn't have the power, there spoiled little provinces, mainly Quebec.

[Rocky7]

Originally Posted by TheKi

What would it take for Alberta to split? Do we need a separatist provincial government?

That's it. That, and a 50%+ referendum.

We need a separatist provincial government with a vision. People won't vote for anger. We need leadership. People need to know what we could be. They need to see it.

[TheKi]

Originally Posted by Rocky7

That's it. That, and a 50%+ referendum.

We need a separatist provincial government with a vision. People won't vote for anger. We need leadership. People need to know what we could be. They need to see it.

well maybe come next election we need to start up a separatist party.

[Gust]

Originally Posted by Rocky7

People need to know what we could be. They need to see it.

Well you're talking like a true politician now,,, running your platform on the assumption that everyone around you are blind and only you can see the way.

Start transposing more "We" into your statements of "They" and try using warmer terms than "People". In fact that statement "People need to know what we could be." Rings of another time, not so long ago, when those people
who stuck around just long enough to find out the "what we could be" part of the sentence, found themselves on a train that went only one direction.

[Gust]

Originally Posted by Rocky7

You must've asked very quietly. I was here. So was Hal53. So were others. Norway boomed while we died. Trudeau, Marc LaLonde and MacEachern, supported by greedy eastern liberals, did it. On purpose. On October 28, 1980.

Nope, asked it several times but I guess most people on here aren't from here, are you? And of course some weathered through that time and bought up little hurting companies in the fire-sale, maybe Hal was one of them -I don't know- but I do know a few who did and made a killing on their fellow Albertan. Two bit players who cashed in on their fellow Albertans and didn't give a rat's azz who fell to the wayside,, sometimes it was their neighbours. If it happens again, watch how much camaraderie exists here. And some of them are still here, in Alberta, cashing in on your boring sentiment that it's Our oil.

Luckily a few of us are insulated from what happens in the O&G world, so I don't give a rat's azz, boom or bust, I'll do fine.

[TheKi]

heck rather then leaving it might just be better to kick Ontario and Quebec out